NHS Litigation Authority to focus on early case settlement

NHS Litigation Authority to focus on early case settlement

It was announced early 2017 in the House of Commons that the NHS Litigation Authority is to be renamed, and that its focus will be on settling cases early, rather than fighting them.

The NHS Litigation Authority is the legal arm of the NHS, which deals with all medical negligence claims against the NHS. Coffin Mew have extensive experience of pursuing claims against them and can attest to the culture that exists of them fighting every case they can, regularly forcing Claimants to Issue Court proceedings and delaying settlement for many years. Such an approach causes our clients untold levels of stress and anxiety.

We specialise in pursuing claims of the most severely injured people, including children suffering from cerebral palsy as a result of brain injury at birth. Our clients are some of the most vulnerable in society. Prolonged litigation is not in their interests as until their claim has been concluded, it is very difficult for them to move on with their lives and plan for the future.

Therefore, any shift in approach towards earlier settlement of cases is to be welcomed. However, for such a change in culture to occur, it will take more than just a name change. Very few details have been provided as to how such a change will be brought about, and until then we remain sceptical as to exactly what impact it will have. We therefore look forward for these further details to be released in due course.